Retinal complications after cataract extraction in patients with high myopia

Objective: To assess risk factors and incidence of retinal complications af ter cataract extraction in patients with high myopia. Design: Retrospective, noncomparative case series. Participants: One hundred eighteen patients with highly myopic eyes who had an axial length of 26 mm or more (mean axial length, 30.13 +/- 2.08 mm) an d who underwent cataract surgery over a period of 6 years were studied. Intervention: Patients underwent cataract extraction either by extracapsula r cataract extraction (ECCE) or phacoemulsification, Prophylactic argon las er photocoagulation was performed in 13 eyes for retinal tears recognized b efore surgery and in 13 eyes after surgery; neodymium:YAG (Nd:YAG) laser ca psulotomy was performed for patients with posterior capsule opacification ( PCO) that affected the vision. Main Outcome Measures: Incidence of retinal detachment and PCO and percenta ge of prophylactic argon laser or of Nd:YAG laser treatments. Results: Of the 118 eyes, 73 (61.9%) underwent ECCE and 45 (38.1%) underwen t phacoemulsification Posterior capsule opacification was the most common c omplication and was found in 30 eyes (25.4%), Thirteen patients (11%) recei ved prophylactic laser treatment for retinal tears before cataract operatio n, and 13 more patients (11%) had postoperative retinal tears requiring las er treatments. None of these patients developed retinal detachment. Two pat ients (1.69%) developed retinal detachment within 6 months after their oper ations. There were no intraoperative complications, and postoperative Nd:YA G capsulotomy was not performed in these two patients. Conclusions: Active searching and prophylactic laser treatments for retinal tears developed before and after cataract extraction in patients with high myopia are recommended. This may lower the incidence of postoperative reti nal detachment.